At the foothills of the White Mountains, the province of Sfakia is home to one of the most famous gorges in Europe, the imposing Gorge of Samaria. The trail is crossed by thousands of visitors every summer. It starts from the plateau of Omalos, descends through a magical dense forest of cypresses and pine trees, passes between very narrow passages with vertical walls of a height of up to 500m, before reaching the seaside village of Agia Roumeli. Other well-known hiking canyons of the region are the gorge of Imbros gorge that starts near the plateau Askyfou, the wild canyon of Aradena, the lush green Sfakiano Gorge, the Gorge Kallikratis, the rugged canyon of Tripiti and the famous gorge of Agia Irini which ends at the beach of Sougia. Some green hiking canyons are located at the region of Zourva and Karanou, while West Crete also hosts the impressive gorges of Diktamos, Lissos, Topolia, Asfendou, Kambos, Sirikari, Sassalos and more.
The canyon of Asfendou is one of the many gorges in Sfakia province, starting from deserted hamlet of Asfendou that currently houses some local sheep herders. Along the canyon runs a passable but steep trail, parallel to the streambed. In many places the Libyan sea is visible.
The Gorge of Kandanos is a place of exquisite naturalistic and historical importance, which is today endangered by the operation of a large quarry. The Gorge of Kandanos hosted the first battle between armed residents against governmental troops in the history of the Second World War.
The Gorge of Tromarissa is located near the village Zourva and it is said that it gets its name after the myths about fairies and goblins that scared passersby at the position where we meet the spring of Tromarissa (tromazo means get scared in Greek).
The canyon Kavis is one of the longest and wildest of Sfakia area and despite located next to Chora Sfakion, it remains unknown to many people who usually just enjoy swimming at Iligas. The riverbed is dry almost always, except after several hours of rain. Apart from the main stream, in Kavis fall other 5 sub-gorges, extremely wild.
Between the villages Zourva and Meskla we meet one unknown canyon, one of the many of the region, which is called Lagos. Its entrance is located west of the village Zourva and ends in the village Meskla, at the bridge of the village, just before merging with the river Keritis.
At the furthest tip of Akrotiri Cape there is the gorge of Diplochachalo. It is located close to the village of Chordaki, on the way to the famous beach of Stefanou. This is a small, stunning and purely technical canyon with 6 descents, 2 of which are quite high. It starts just below the quarry that dominates the area.
One of the many parallel canyons of the wider area of Fragokastelo. It is a small canyon (2km long) starting from the beautiful plateau Manikas and ending at the seaside village Skaloti after 1:30 hours hiking with steep slopes.
The canyon of Chosti is formed by the small settlement of Hosti in Chania, amid one of the most beautiful and lush green places of Crete. Away from the known tourist routes, it remains completely unknown and yet untouched. You will not find in any tourist guide referring to it, though it is a jewel of western Crete and is one of the most beautiful small canyons small, which can be easily crossed without any canyoning equipment.